Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1887-11-04
FARM NOTES.

The corn that will keep best fer seed
is that which has cured well on the stalk
and been hung In dry place.
Young steers car be made to increase
very rapidly. A steer in Indiana "a
months old weighs 1916 pounds.
Now is the time to hatch very small
bantams, as the cold weather prevents
full development, and the smaller the
bantams the more valuable.
The value and Importance of diversi-
ty of the crops was very apparent this
year where drouth prevailed. Dc not
place all dependence on single crop.
Where the dry weather has injured the
pastures keep the sheep off, as they
Craze very close, the effect of which
would be felt by the pasture crop next
season.
To show what may be obtained by good
breeding it has been stated that in Eng
land 1900 sheep recently brought $4,000,
which is over $l2 each, and is very
large sum for SO many at one sale.
The turkeys should be given full range
now, as there are no crops they can harm.
They will find large portion of their
food, and large flock can be raised at
very small cost if given plenty of room.
Fine manure for crops is more valua-
bic than coarse. Hens can break up
manure better, perhaps, than any one of
the machines invented for that purpose.
Scatter some wheat over the pile and
turn them on.
On LAY soils poultry yards may be
greatly improved by placing a little
drain . feet below the surface of the
yard, and then add one foot Of sand.
Treated in this way, the rains carry down
much of the filth to tie drains, aud save
labor.
The farmer can not well get along with
out having at least few COWS. He is
therefore interested, be it eve- so little,
in making them pay, and can not afford
to shut his eyes to an opportunity of
acquiring points on profitable dairy man
agement.
Prof. Riley, one of the first authorities
on insects, does not approve of white
washing the stems of shade trees. As
against the tussock moth it may be of
some slight use, but the bag worm, the
web worm and the elm leaf beetle can
not be affected by it.
Since 1860 the average amount of wool
grown on each sheep has doubled. In
that year the product was 213 pounds
per sheep; now it is 5 pounds. This has
been accomplished by the grading up of
common focks and improving them by
the use of merino rams.
The best fertilizers for grapes are bone
meal and potash. Unground bones are
slower in action than the meals but bush
al of them burIed at tn e roots OF vine will
in time be taken up and transformed in
to grapes. Wood ashes and homemade
soft soap suds furnish potash.
Among mutton eaters there is an in
creasing demand for more lean and less
fat as is the case with Down mutton.
land in parts of the world where sheep
are raised as much for their meat as
ttheir WOOL this is going to be leading
{element in the question of what brand of
fsheep to raise.
Very much depends upon the milking,
both in regard to the yield of the milk
land the quality of the butter or cheese
Amade from it. The formation of the
COWS udder is such that the secretion of
stha milk is helped by good milking,
while it is retarded and in time leEsened
! by bad milking.
After the fowls begin to mott they
}should be given ground bone once every
iday and meal OF meat at least three
times a week, IS the shedding of the new
ifsathers is severe tax on them. If the
J hens be we'll cared for while melting they
3will begin to lay before winter Sell off
the surplus cOekerels, and do not retain
ithe late Matched pQllets, as they will not
LAY before spring.